discrimination

Anas Abudaabes, arrested for publishing satirical Facebook posts about people celebrating the wildfires in Israel, talks about how Israeli police tried to humiliate him, and explains why he insists on criticizing Arab society in Israel. Like Ludvik, the protagonist in Milan Kundera’s novel “The Joke,” Anas Abudaabes has discovered firsthand the problems that arise when a regime lacks a sense of humor or irony. Yet Abudaabes, unlike Ludvik, has not lost his own sense of humor, even following his Kafkaesque arrest last week for writing an ironic Facebook post lampooning those who celebrated the fires that were raging across Israel.…

The Israel Press Council approves a change to ethics rules that forbids journalists and media outlets from discriminating against and excluding certain populations from their coverage. Among those opposing the change: the editor of ‘Israel Hayom’ and the publisher of ‘Haaretz.’ By Oren Persico The Israel Press Council last month approved a change to the Rules of Journalistic Ethics according to which media outlets should not discriminate against various population segments or exclude them from their coverage. The change, which was put forth by Union of Journalists in Israel chairman Yair Tarchitsky, was approved 14 to 4, with one abstention. Among…

Not only are Arabs profiled at Israeli airports, it turns out the way security personnel search and follow them may also be illegal. Despite dozens of testimonies, Airport Authority denies utilizing strip searches at all. Israeli airport security is notorious for profiling and discriminating against Arab passengers, from invasive and humiliating questioning and strip searches, assigning security officer to escort them as they walk through the airport after undergoing a security check, and more. Could it be that authorities don't actually have the legal authority to do all that? [tmwinpost] In a letter to Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit and Israel Airports Authority (IAA) Director General…

The data, obtained for the years 2011-2015, paints an even more grim picture of discrimination, especially in the arrests of minors, for crimes like 'incitement,' and predictably, for 'security offenses.' Ayman Odeh: Data reveals deeply ingrained racism in the police. By Noam Rotem Non-Jews comprise a mere 25 percent of Israel's population, yet 60 percent of all people arrested by Israeli police between the years of 2011 and 2015 were non-Jewish, according to data obtained by +972 and its Hebrew-language sister site, Local Call. When it comes to the arrest of minors, the picture is even worse. [tmwinpost] Police provided…

Israelis of Ethiopian descent have taken to the streets several times over the past year to demand an end to police discrimination and brutality against their community. Now, a group of mothers is leading a new movement against the violence and discrimination police use against their sons. Read more: A long time coming: Why Ethiopian-Israelis are protesting Ethiopian-Israelis' protest against police violence is met with police violence

Since the 'Representation Index' was launched, however, that number has gone up — dramatically. The index also tracks whether Arabs are interviewed in positive or negative contexts. By Oren Persico Only a month after being launched, a new initiative aimed at fostering more fair and equal representation and coverage of Arab citizens in Israeli media has had a dramatic, positive impact on the number of Arab experts interviewed on Israeli television and radio broadcasts. The “Representation Index,” an initiative of Sikkuy, the Berl Katznelson Foundation and “The Seventh Eye” website, revealed that even though one of every five Israelis is…

Senior army officer testifies to Knesset committee that building enforcement is 'far more severe against Palestinians' than Jews. There are over 11,000 Israeli demolition orders pending against Palestinian-owned structures. The Israeli army demolishes Palestinian homes in the West Bank at disproportionately higher rates than it demolishes Jewish settler homes, a senior Israeli army officer told a Knesset sub-committee on Wednesday. The admission demonstrates yet another way in which Jews and Palestinians are held to different legal standards, and often different legal systems in West Bank. “Our enforcement against Palestinians is hundreds of percentage points higher [than against Jews],” Maj.-Gen. Yoav…

An investigative report finds that numerous Israeli hospitals are openly implementing segregation. But journalists have exposed the phenomenon for at least a decade and nobody seems willing to do anything about it. Despite years of denials and regulators vowing to tackle the problem, a number of major Israeli hospitals continue to segregate Jewish and Arab mothers in maternity wards across the country, according to an investigation published Tuesday by public radio broadcaster Israel Radio. In some hospitals the segregation is unofficial policy; in others it is implemented at the behest of patients. [tmwinpost] The segment on Israel Radio included recorded…

According to a recent court ruling, only Bedouin need to be concerned about illegal construction. Israeli Jews, it turns out, are immune to home demolitions. By Michal Rotem (translated by Ofer Neiman) The Be'er Sheva Magistrates Court recently overturned an indictment against a Jewish Israeli for building three guest houses without a permit, due to "abuse of process." In short, the defendant argued that enforcement had been selective, since the entire nearby Jewish community of Azuz — located in Israel's Negev Desert — had been built without permits in the same area in which the defendant operates his guest rooms.…

The government’s latest attempts to oust Balad from the Knesset are part of an intensifying campaign against Arab political movements, regardless of their different stripes. Three months ago, when the Israeli government outlawed the northern branch of the Islamic Movement, Palestinian citizens of Israel feared that they were witnessing the beginning of an intensified campaign against Arab political groups. Many suspected at the time that the government’s next target would be the Balad party, the nationalist faction of the Joint List, which has been in the crosshairs of consecutive Israeli governments since the 1990s. [tmwinpost] Those suspicions were confirmed last…

'Coexistence' in one of Israel's major mixed cities means Palestinian citizens must forget who they are, where they were born, and whom they were born to. By Zohar Elmakias Two eighth grade girls from Ramle's Juwarish neighborhood stabbed a security guard at the central bus station last Thursday. Following the incident, I thought a lot of about Ramle. I was born and raised there, and many of my family members still live in the city. Ramle is, for better or for worse, the landscape of my childhood, the place I always go back to. As a child, I participated in various…

Cleaning services are being promoted to potential clients in north Tel Aviv with a flyer that prices its cleaners according to their ethnic origin. The advert also refers to its employees in the feminine only. A service provider offering cleaning and housekeeping in north Tel Aviv has taken the term "human resources" to a whole new level, distributing a flyer that prices its cleaners according to their ethnic origin. [tmwinpost] The advert, which was distributed in one of Tel Aviv's most affluent areas, was first posted on Facebook by political blogger Tal Schneider, who was given the flyer by an…

Right-wing ministers in Israel’s government are putting their own political interests over the economic and social needs of the country’s Arab citizens. By Rawnak Natour and Abed Kanaaneh Arab citizens of the State of Israel have suffered from discrimination by the establishment since the day the country declared independence in 1948, discrimination that is reflected in almost every aspect of their lives: land confiscation, discrimination in housing and employment, extreme disparities in health and educational services, and an absence of infrastructure and proper sources of funding for local government councils. This has given rise to serious problems such as poverty,…

About +972 Magazine

+972 is an independent, blog-based web magazine. It was launched in August 2010, resulting from a merger of a number of popular English-language blogs dealing with life and politics in Israel and Palestine.

+972 is an independent, blog-based web magazine. It was launched in August 2010, resulting from a merger of a number of popular English-language blogs dealing with life and politics in Israel and Palestine.